Photo by Anne Nygård on Unsplash
What Happens if All American Brands Are Foreign-Owned?
The last remnants of an American brand’s era are fading, as U.S. Steel, once a shining embodiment of American industrial prowess, is set to be acquired by Nippon Steel of Japan in a jaw-dropping $14.1 billion merger deal. At one point in U.S. history, the very image of molten iron pouring into a basic oxygen furnace at the U.S. Steel’s Granite City Works was synonymous with the transformation of America into a world superpower.
Yet, the upcoming acquisition by Nippon Steel is not the first instance of a foreign entity taking over an iconic American brand. Currently, many brands started by early American pioneers now wave international flags. This revolution is a direct result of globalization, and to better understand what companies have been affected, here are some notable examples of foreign-owned American brands:
The American Innovator: GE Appliances
Well-known American brand General Electric, founded by none other than America’s genius inventor Thomas Edison, has long been seen as a symbol of America’s innovative spirit. However, the GE appliances that many Americans have in their homes are now foreign-owned. The century-old appliance division was purchased by China’s Haier Group in 2016 for $5.6 billion. This came as GE was struggling and needed to generate cash to alleviate an enormous amount of debt.
The Iconic American Brew: Budweiser
The red and white cans of Budweiser, along with the blue Bud Light cans, are fixtures of American social events. Founded in the U.S. in 1879 as Anheuser-Busch, the company transformed the beer industry with pioneering pasteurization technology. But, in 2008, European alcohol conglomerate InBev acquired the iconic brewery, creating Belgium-based AB InBev, which also owns other popular beer labels like Corona and Stella Artois.
Fast Food: Burger King
Burger King, the Miami-born fast-food sensation famous for its Whopper, is now a subsidiary of Canadian conglomerate Restaurant Brands International (RBI). RBI was formed through a $12.5 billion merger between Burger King and Canada-based Tim Hortons in 2014. While RBI’s headquarters are in Toronto, Burger King’s functional headquarters are in Miami.
The Convenience Store Chain: 7-Eleven
With its signature Slurpee and Big Gulp drinks, 7-Eleven has become one of America’s most recognized convenience store chains. However, the corner store, founded in Texas in 1927, is now owned by Seven & I Holdings, a Japanese retailer based in Tokyo.
The Neighborhood Grocer: Trader Joe’s
The popular grocery chain Trader Joe’s, known for its private label goods and competitive prices, is owned by Albrecht Discounts, the same German company that owns ALDI.
Auto Brands: Jeep, Chrysler, and Dodge
Jeep, Chrysler, and Dodge, quintessential symbols of American automotive excellence, are owned by Amsterdam-based auto giant Stellantis, formed by the merger of Italian company Fiat Group and French manufacturer PSA Group.
The Refrigeration Pioneer: Frigidaire
Frigidaire, the refrigerator appliance firm that has given Americans many firsts — from the “first self-contained refrigerator” to the “first-ever home freezer, which it originally called the ‘ice cream cabinet’” — is now owned by Swedish multinational home appliance manufacturer Electrolux AB, which bought the brand in 1986.
The Ice Cream Innovators: Ben & Jerry’s
Finally, Ben & Jerry’s, famous for its creative ice cream flavors with pun-filled names, was acquired by British conglomerate Unilever in 2000.
Other examples include:
- Holiday Inn, purchased by Bass PLC, a U.K. company, owned by InterContinental Hotels Group in the U.K.
- The Chrysler Building, which has been purchased by foreign companies several times
- Alka-Seltzer, owned by Bayer AG from Germany
- Good Humor, owned by Unilever
- Gerber, owned by Nestlé, a Swiss company
- Firestone, owned by Bridgestone Corporation from Japan
While many of these brands still flaunt their American heritage, it’s evident that the business world today is more globalized than ever. This trend is a testament to the power of innovation and brands, transcending borders and achieving universal appeal. As U.S. Steel prepares to join these magnates under international ownership, we are reminded that change is the only constant in the business world.
On the other side of the coin, it seems that the main focus of American companies has been on big tech foreign expansion, as seen by the growing list of foreign subsidiaries that Google owns.
Discussion Questions
How can American businesses maintain their national identity while navigating this increasingly interconnected landscape? To what extent do you believe that the foreign acquisition of American brands, from Budweiser to Ben & Jerry’s, impacts the cultural significance of these brands domestically? In the face of such acquisitions, should American companies strive to retain control over their brands, or should they embrace this trend as a necessary adaptation to the dynamics of a global economy? If American companies continue to focus on foreign expansion in the tech industry, how will this affect the balance and diversity of the American economy?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Richard J. George, Ph.D.
Professor of Food Marketing, Haub School of Business, Saint Joseph's University
Oliver Guy
Global Industry Architect, Microsoft Retail
Amazon is American. Apple is American. Walmart is American. Home Depot is American. Kraft Heinz is American. Coca-Cola is American. McDonalds and Starbucks, both American.
When it comes to big consumer brands, I don’t think the US has much to worry about. Besides, most businesses are international these days so have operations in the US and elsewhere, regardless of where they are based.
Interestingly, out of the top 50 US retailers, around 45 or so are American. Retail is a much more localized business than consumer packaged goods or other industry segments.
flaunt their American heritage
If that’s your marketing strategy, then you might have a problem. Otherwise I don’t think it’s a terribly big issue. And I’m unclear on what is meant by American companies “striv(ing) to retain control over their brands”: if a company wants to sell itself to a foreign company, it’s generally an issue for that company’s shareholders to decide….I don’t see the brands wandering off on their own
15 of the Interbrand top 20 in the world are US owned. 12 of the next 25 are US owned.
https://interbrand.com/best-global-brands/
To be precise, those companies are not “U.S. owned.” If public, they are owned by the shareholders. Forty percent of the equity in U.S.-based companies is held internationally.
There’s a significant difference between brand ownership & marketing. I would wager that most Americans don’t know or don’t care that the brands listed in the article are not American owned. Consider Aldi for example, few consumers know it’s owned by the Albrecht family or that Trader Joe’s is owned by the same family. Brand promises are more important than brand ownership.
Markets today are global. Supply chains are global. As companies grow and look for new opportunities to expand, naturally, they start looking beyond their borders as long as they support their American workforces and obey US laws, not an issue. And, before we get too excited about lost revenue, I think a bigger issue is American companies who have figured out how to generate billions of dollars in US earnings and yet pay zero taxes.
Companies are not citizens or patriots. The idea that companies belong to countries is foolish and naive. Even if headquartered in the U.S., is a company American? Iconic Coca-Cola gets 70% of its revenues from outside the U.S. Coke hasn’t had an American CEO in over five decades.
Business is business. In the most capitalistic tradition, I am sure the U.S. Steel stockholders are pleased with Nippon Steel’s acquisition.
This is not right. We live in a global economy, but most brands I interact with are American owned. The bigger question, and frankly the more important one is- where are your products sourced and how quickly can you react to changes in demand or supply chain shocks.
it’s so not right, I don’t even understand the point. I’m not sure these are the right questions at all.
Exactly- that was on my mind as well.
Not for nothing do foreign car makers have factories in the US and Mexico, while during the pandemic, American Car companies could not get essential parts because they source from China, not a pure retail example, but you get the idea. Same is true of Legos, just fewer dollars at stake per sale
We’re a long way from “all” American brands being foreign-owned, as other panelists have pointed out.
Our key is to continue to be the engine of innovation and new product development that we have always been and generate new brands and companies that consumers here and around the world can fall in love with. Entrepreneurship remains a driver of growth in new businesses and product concepts here in the US. I applaud those retailers that seek out new start-up brands, give them an opportunity to market their products on their shelves & online and help create jobs here in the US. As they grow, those brands can then sell to firms outside the US, and generate a balance of trade with other nations.
As a community, retailers can play a role in US brand development…and we certainly have. We shouldn’t lament examples like those listed but focus on the next big thing conceived and developed here in the US.
I smiled very much while reading this because as a Brit brand heritage is a fascinating subject for me.
In a very similar way many arguable ‘iconic’ UK brands have been sold to foreign hands – Mini, Rolls-Royce & Bentley to Germany, Jaguar Land Rover to India, Cadbury to Mondelez in the US, Rountree to Nestle in Switzerland. Costa Coffee – the UK’s answer to Starbucks was recently acquired by Coca-Cola and Walkers Crisps were purchased by Frito-Lay over 25 years ago.
But at the same time there are brands that have significant strength in the UK that for many years, due to very early investments in the UK, portrayed themselves as British – ore perhaps minimised their non-UK heritage. Ford is one and Heinz another. (Heinz even bought a piece of UK coastline in 1987 as a gift to the nation to celebrate its centenary in the UK).
In a global world, do consumers still worry about brand and heritage? That very much depends – some brands really push on the brand heritage others less so. It is also fascinating to look at individual brands that are owned by conglomerates – companies like Unilever, Reckitt, Mondelez, Kraft Heinz, Nestle, and others own many individual brands and often sell specific products to their rivals as they refocus and change their approach. Because on this there are very few major corporations whose entire brand portfolio is from one single country.
Nothing to see here…these trends ebb and flow. Remember when a Japanese based group wanted to buy Pebble Beach? That was blocked, however there was a lot of teeth gnashing about Japan buying all things American way back when. These acquisitions make sense to me because it is rare for a foreign brand to market effectively here-I mean, of course Haier would be interested in GE Appliances.
I would say, American businesses do face a challenge in maintaining their national identity amidst global acquisitions. The foreign ownership of iconic brands like Budweiser and Ben & Jerry’s may dilute cultural significance domestically, however, adapting to the global economy is necessary in today’s times. Companies should strive to retain control over their brand to preserve authenticity, thus, ensuring a balance between a brand’s universal appeal while staying connected to its American roots. In the tech industry, American companies expanding abroad should be mindful of preserving economic diversity at home to prevent concentration of power and safeguard a harmonious blend of global success with cultural continuity in American business.